Everyone loves to lament the spiraling stupidity of our species. It is a universal pastime that unites even the most disparate ideologues. This, in part, accounts for the perennial claim that the 2006 B-movie Idiocracy is “the only comedy that became a documentary.” I am also guilty of palming my forehead and referencing this satirical ode to our cultural nosedive, but I've come to think of it differently lately. Could it be that we use the central conceit of this film to justify our own conceited decisions about middle-class procreation?
First, let me me say that I do not intend to cast anyone, educated or non-educated, rich or poor, as a villain. In fact, my argument is that Idiocracy-type classist thinking does that exact thing.
The central tenet of the burgeoning Idiocracy is that educated, financially-solvent people have stopped procreating because they are pathologically responsible in making their life decisions, while the ignorant masses are mindlessly mating with wild abandon. This culminates eventually in a nation teaming with their slack-jawed spawn who watch “Ow My Balls” on TV and elect a pro wrestler as president. However, instead of thinking of this problem as related to unequal access to education and opportunity, it seems the majority of viewers and film referencers respond with puffed-up feelings of a patriotic duty to spread their good genes to counteract the rising tide of stupidity. Apart from any intent by the filmmakers, it has become a rallying cry for a procreational arms race, and a justification for a vain middle-class to ignore issues of over-population and ecological stress, to say nothing of socieconomic privilege. Rather than see a mutual responsibility in shaping the values and opportunities of future generations, regardless of whose womb they emerged from, they see a simple-minded mandate to increase output of their own progeny to counter the swelling masses of idiots.
If we accept that less access to education, healthcare, family planning, and economic opportunity does relate to higher birth rates (as is implied by demographic transition models of development, as well as the effect of female empowerment on fertility rates), then we have already complicated this facile notion that “idiocy” is in-born. Instead, it can be understood as culturally constructed and enforced. A child born to backseat breeding bumpkins, if given the same nurturing environment as his or her upper-class counterparts, has an equal likelihood of contributing to the cause of human development.
Rather than have young professionals patting themselves on their backs and pregnant bellies, we should maybe work towards a shared responsibility for all children: even those not featuring our oh-so-precious genetic imprint. While I think it is laudable, responsible, and even selfless to forgo your own fecundity, I do have plenty of criticism for non-reproducing citizens who feel no duty to support future generations. Just as the short-sighted views of many breeding humans often hones their narrow focus on the somehow “noble” chore of raising their own children, to self-congratulate and wash your hands of humanity's fate just because you didn't reproduce is equally problematic.
Despite having no MiniMes roaming the streets, that does not mean that I shouldn't support public schools with my taxes, advocate for access to affordable child care, and push for other measures that do not benefit me directly. That's because – apart from just being plainly ethical – this is how we prevent the Idiocracy from happening. It is not by looking down upon the 'stupid' breeders or trying to out-breed them with our superior seed, but by realizing that their children are the future of humanity, and we should give them every opportunity to thrive.
We know that the environment a person grows up in greatly shapes who they become. So why not focus on creating better contexts for human development? This means removing barriers to social and economic justice and equality. As we accomplish this, it will continue to lower crime and birthrates while also enabling more great minds flourish and contribute to the arts and sciences. Our best hope as a species is not adding to the problem of over-population with vain justifications of our genetic supremacy, but rather realizing that all of our fates are intertwined. In doing so, we might get further by collectively shedding the facile notion that “some people shouldn't breed.”
That means unselfishly caring about more than just your own kid(s), and it also means the childless need to acknowledge their social responsibilities too. Just because you didn't buy into the “children are the meaning of life” mantra often desperately repeated ad naseum by sleep-deprived parents, doesn't mean you get to withdraw from society. Much like myopic moms and self-indulgent dads, if your horizon of concern ends with your own genetic legacy – whether propagated or not -- you're likely something far worse than an idiot.
